Niger bans French aircrafts from its airspace

The Nigerien government announced, Monday, that it banned French aircrafts from entering its' airspace. This came as the tension escalated between the two countries after the President Emmanuel Macron decided to withdraw the French ambassador and forces stationed in Niger. The airspace is still open to all national and international commercial flights, but French planes and those chartered by France are prohibited, as stated in a recent government announcement on the website of the Agency for Aerial Navigation Safety in Africa and Madagascar (ASECNA). Niger's airspace is one of the largest important air routes for global aviation and its closure will cause disturbance and changes in routes leading to traveling additional thousands of kilometers, added the announcement. President Macron said in interview on Sunday that the French ambassador will return to Paris, and that the 1,500 French soldiers will leave in the upcoming weeks and months for full withdrawal by the end of the year. The court in Niger h ad previously ordered the expulsion of French Ambassador Sylvain Etty from the country, based on a petition submitted by the ruling military junta and in support of its decision in this regard. On July 27, soldiers in the Nigerien army announced the dismissal of the country's president, Mohammad Bazoum, and his detention in his residence, closing the borders, and imposing curfew in the country, in order to put an end to the deteriorating economic and security situation in Niger. Source: Kuwait News Agency